Letters

to contract management of our electrical system to PSEG. But Kremer is wrong to suggest that after the breakup, Long Island should get back out there and seek a relationship with a different private company.

Our current arrangement, in which a public utility (LIPA) outsources management to a private corporation (PSEG), is a unicorn found nowhere else, because it’s unworkable. PSEG wastes tens of millions of dollars a year, and gave us high electric bills, substandard service, and the lowest customer satisfaction in its class.

But the problem is bigger than one underperforming company. The incentives of outsourcing are all wrong.

PSEG’s incentive is to serve shareholders, which it does well, posting impressive profits. It also does well for itself, with big executive salaries and bonus packages.

It’s the same with other private utility companies. National Grid tried holding New York hostage by halting all new gas hookups unless it got a new pipeline, bringing local development to a standstill and damaging our economy. The company pursued its own interests at the expense of the public’s, and didn’t back down until the state imposed a $36 million fine and threatened to yank its operating license. Then National Grid had the chutzpah to turn around and push for a rate hike.

Putting ratepayers first would mean lower bills, shorter outages, and better service. Serving the public interest would mean faster ramp-up of renewables, and giving local voices a say in planning and oversight. Outsourced private manage- ment isn’t designed to deliver these things. That’s why, instead of getting enmeshed with another private company after PSEG, LIPA should switch to full public power, and manage the system for the benefit of Long Islanders.

LISA TYSON Executive director, Long Island Progressive Coalition Massapequa

The outdoor season is the noisy-aircraft season

To the Editor:

There are only a few short months during which we who live on Long Island can enjoy being outdoors, riding bikes, taking walks, sitting in the backyard, gardening and eating outside.

And we are bombarded by the sound of jets taking off from Kennedy Airport every 60 to 90 seconds.

The scream of the engines is a health threat. It’s a proven fact that excess noise impacts hearing; raises blood pressure, stress, anxiety and depression; and can lead to cardiovascular problems.

Can’t air traffic controllers shoot these aircraft out over the Atlantic Ocean until they reach significant height, and then turn them back over urban areas, rather than creating havoc with our lives in Rockville Centre, Lynbrook, Malverne and other communities that are in path of the takeoff patterns?

While we continue to fight against Gov. Kathy Hochul’s attempt to seize control over local zoning, the town will also fight illegal signs, overgrowth on public land, littered roadways, messy parking lots and, of course, graffiti. The task force is not limited to land and streets maintained by the town; it will also target signs on utility poles, and will not be hindered by bureaucratic red tape.

Low-level crimes blight our community, and by not holding criminals accountable, we’re pretending that these crimes don’t matter. We need proper leadership in Albany to do its part by equipping law enforcement with the resources needed to go after low-level crimes. Policies like cashless bail and “Raise the Age” only encourage this behavior, and we’re starting to see an increase in crimes such as graffiti at town parks.

Hateful graffiti was recently found at a park in Seaford. While the drawings and handwriting were crude and childish, the message it tried to perpetuate was one of intolerance. The town was swift to remove the graffiti, but it’s not uncommon for the act to be a repeat offense. There is no fear of repercussion, and that empowers people to confidently scrawl messages of hate.

The town will continue to do its best to remove illegal signs and graffiti — especially those that infringe on the town’s zero-tolerance policy regarding hatred of any form — but sometimes the effort feels like it’s one step forward, two steps back. This needs to change.

We all want the same thing: safe, affordable and scenic neighborhoods in which to live, work and raise our families. It is my mission to keep the Town of Hempstead on this track, and I’m proud that our Quality-of-Life Task Force will continue to beautify a new area every day. We’re doing our part to fix the broken windows, but Albany would make this mission a whole lot easier if its leaders held criminals accountable.

Hempstead Town Councilman Christopher Carini represents the town’s 5th District.

Framework by Tim Baker

summertime while paying monumentally high taxes to do so. We deserve some peace and quiet.

Rockville